


A language that once sent ravens

by Riana1



Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: Dragon Age Kink Meme, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-15
Updated: 2014-01-15
Packaged: 2018-01-08 21:29:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,137
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1137589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Riana1/pseuds/Riana1
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Hawke sisters are vehement about their prayers for the dead, friend and foe alike.</p><p>No one asks why.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

i. You have made of exile a homeland

Bethany always does the burning.

Kirkwall has refined her fire spells to a standard of dwarven gold. Flesh, fat, a bloom of fire in two beats of tongue and it is done.

And done. And done. Only to begun. Bethany bites down on a giggle. The mana fatigue finally settling in. Despite Isabella's best efforts, Bethany never has gotten drunk; natural apostate caution aside, Bethany figured the lightheadedness and lyrics from exhaustion were a good indication of her potential drunkenness but cost no coin and were safer for her liver.

Isabella thinks them odd, Sebastian devout, and Varric /interesting/ that the two Hawke sisters took such pains to finish last rites right after killing their enemies.

Still not a one will meet her sister's gaze long after voicing such a question after the first time.

Bethany can barely meet her sister's eyes after the cremations. Her beloved sister, the shadow above her cradle, and the shield from templars and loose talk; after all who would think of the sweet younger sister was a mage given the uncanny nature of the eldest?

Her sister stares into the smoke, chanting in her low timbre. Bethany almost dares to ask if they have gone yet but swallows the words whole. Her head swims and Bethany sinks to a squat, hoping for a peaceful trip to the Hanged Man, for stories, for sleep, for secrets to stay in her stomach and be still Maker bless--

At least road dust and ash were easier to get out than blood. After all her sister has told her about blood and its /binding/...Bethany is sometimes surprised how sane her sister is.

Given what she sees.

There is a reason why Bethany always does the burning.

And her sister does the praying.


	2. Chapter 2

ii. The ghosts swarm.

They speak as one  
person.  
Each  
loves you.  
Each  
has left something  
undone.

Fenris finds Hawke in his chair, her hair unbounded. He clenches his fingers in a fist to keep them from betraying him and tangling in her hair.

Craven he might be but Fenris will not be weak again and hurt her. He has done that enough. Her name dies in his throat when her eyes meet his.

Enchanting usually, extraordinary on any normal day but at this moment, Fenris fights the instinct to grab his sword: she isn't a mage, she isn't possessed, she is Hawke, she is /Hawke/, she is his Hawk--

"You said you remembered that night."

The non sequitur hits Fenris right between the eyes. He flees from her bed like a thief, does not see her for a week, and she sits like a Fade induced fever dream in his chair and she speaks to him about his past.

Either she is drunk or he isn't drunk enough. The thousand and one reunions Fenris imagined not one had Hawke inquiring about his memory. He only answer her with truth. 

Fenris spoke, "I did."

Her gaze does not waver but the cadence of her breathing does. A hitch Fenris hadn't seen since her sister was dragged from her arms unconscious. The impulse to bury his face in her lap and beg for her forgiveness, just don't cry, has him three steps closer to Hawke before he reign in his wayward desires.

"Do you want the truth?"

Hawke does not lie. Anders and Merrill cloaked their rationalizations in righteousness and Isabella and Varric might as well be drapers considering all their fabrications but Hawke as a rule did not lie. She never answered all questions but she was as honest as her blade. One he rather have in his gut than this trembling right now. 

Fenris answered, "Yes."

Hawke goes as boneless as a rope dropped corspe; her voice spirits up to him. 

A recitation. 

A requiem. 

Your sister is Varania. Your sister has red hair. Your sister is a /mage/. Your sister serves in the summer house of Master Ahriman. Your sister and you play in the red brick courtyard while your mother hung the wash to dry your mother is Latona your mother loved you and you competed to free your mother and sister when Danarius offeredthemarkingsyoulovedshelovedfenrisyournameisletoLetoLETO--

The red scratch on her cheek starts to bleed before Fenris realized that his right hand is across her mouth and the left around her throat. He can only sink into the floor and pull Hawke down with him. He wants to push her into the dirt and run, he wants to rip her clothes off and bury himself so deeply in her that nothing can come between them, he wants her to lie, he wants to believe her words are lies, he wants to lie down and listen to her heartbeat until morning and this madness ends.

Mostly Fenris wants Hawke to stop crying.

So he kisses her.

After his need to breathe breaks out over his need to memorize every inch of Hawke's mouth, Fenris pulls away and tucks Hawke into the crook of his shoulder, resting his head on hers. Hawke murmurers his name twice before Fenris can his attention from the tangle of firelight on her hair in his hand."Yes, Hawke?"

"Fenris, I see dead people."

"Varric will have to write you better lines for the book, Hawke," Fenris said.

Hawke gave a short bark of laughter and Fenris knew the night would be long but they would make it.


	3. Chapter 3

iii. working hard to deny the fact of bones

ladyhawke, ladyhawke  
fly away home  
the city a'fire,the dead will roam

ladyhawke, ladyhawke  
fly away high  
do not look back, your child will die

ladyhawke, ladyhawke  
fly away low  
a ship to catch, your love to go

ladyhawke, ladyhawke  
fly away please  
a wolf besides,to the far seas

"Ladyhawke, Ladyhawke" is a is a common nursery rhyme. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 16815. The traditional verse dates back to the founding of New Kirkwall after old city burned to the ground in 1678.

The traditional explanation behind the song concerns the usage of seahawks in Kirker falconry; eyases were taken from the cliff-side nests and songs were sung to scare the mother birds and remind the falconer to 'awolfen' or use sharp boot-claws to stick to the cliffs.

The Tethras traditions attach to the song to the mythic Lady Hawke romantic figure but like the Black Fox, such popular folktales tend to be adopted and absorbed into local populaces as the tales travel with trade and tide. The Lady Hawke has approached beautification in the Rivani strega cult, associated with the Captain Isabella myths encourage claims of historical accuracy. While several Captain Isabellas have lived and died on the high seas, no definite proof of Lady Hawke and her white wolf survive in any creditable source.


End file.
